JBL Signs On As Sponsor of North American Concert Tour Featuring Kings of Leon and Secret Machines

WOODBURY, NY — JBL, the leading manufacturer of professional and consumer loudspeakers, has signed on as the official sponsor of the North American summer tour of Kings of Leon and Secret Machines, two cutting-edge rock bands that are each redefining the sound of rock and roll with uniquely creative musical styles — and creating extraordinary excitement among music lovers worldwide.

Kings of Leon is a rock quartet with a blues and garage-rock twist that has made an impact as one of the most distinctive and original new bands of the decade with its intensely powerful, no-holds-barred recordings and live shows. Its debut album, Youth and Young Manhood, received rave reviews and strong sales, and its follow-up, Aha Shake Heartbreak, featuring riveting songs such as “The Bucket,” has earned the band platinum-record status and greater acclaim. Kings of Leon has been called “one of the most entertaining, talented new bands making music today,” and “the most beguilingly brilliant band on the planet.”

Secret Machines, a band that describes its music as “painting vivid pictures with sound and volume,” is garnering a growing and devoted following, thanks to its abstract, yet hard-edged, adventurous musical spirit and stunning live performances. The band’s wide-open approach to music-making is evident in songs such as “Sad and Lonely” and “Nowhere Again” from its Now Here Is Nowhere album. Secret Machines was also the first band to issue a full album exclusively for downloading in digital format, more than three months before the CD release.

As the official sponsor of the Kings of Leon and Secret Machines tour, spanning 25 dates in 23 cities, JBL will support the tour with a major sponsorship program, maintaining a highly visible presence at all of the tour’s stops. The program will include extensive media advertising, along with local market radio promotions where listeners will have a chance to win a JBL On Stage* desktop speaker station featuring iPod docking capability, or a JBL On Tour portable speaker system for use with iPod and other portable players.

Paul Bente, president of JBL Consumer Products, noted: “Our sponsorship of the Kings of Leon and Secret Machines tour exemplifies JBL’s commitment to cutting-edge music and audio technology, both in sponsoring these groundbreaking, musically thrilling bands and in offering the state-of-the-art loudspeakers and systems that enable audiences to hear them at their best. Musicians, recording engineers, sound contractors and other industry professionals have always turned to JBL to satisfy their most demanding sound reproduction needs and, today more than ever, JBL continues to define the standards of excellence in sound quality wherever music and movies are enjoyed — in the home and car as well as in concert halls and cinemas worldwide.”

JBL’s acclaimed VerTec (vertical technology) line-array professional audio loudspeakers have been specified on the technical contract for the tour, which will reach clubs, ballrooms and theater venues nationwide. Since their introduction, JBL VerTec loudspeakers have established themselves as a global industry standard for professional concert sound reinforcement, thanks to their advanced-technology drivers and components, compact size, modular installation flexibility and — above all — their extraordinary sound quality.

JBL VerTec loudspeakers can be configured to provide optimum sound quality and coverage in most any type of venue. They deliver exceptional clarity, high output power and a smooth frequency response both on- and off-axis, and they excel at reproducing the full sonic spectrum from the deepest lows to the most subtle high-frequency nuances. Their compact size, lighter weight, ease of installation and superior performance have revolutionized the concert sound industry.

No other company has consistently contributed more than JBL to the evolution of audio reproduction in professional, home, automotive and multimedia applications. Today, the majority of recording studios, concert halls and movie theaters use JBL loudspeakers, and thanks to JBL’s “Pro Sound Comes Home” design philosophy, consumers can enjoy the same clear, accurate and dynamic sound quality heard by the pros. JBL’s consumer loudspeakers utilize technologies and engineering directly derived from the company’s professional models, to deliver spectacular music and movie soundtrack reproduction. From compact, high-value home and car speakers to ultrahigh-end custom installations and the largest scale concert touring systems, JBL truly sets the standards in music and cinema sound.

The dates and locations for the Kings of Leon and Secret Machines summer North American tour are as follows (subject to change):

The Harman Consumer Group (HCG) is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a wide range of high-fidelity loudspeakers, audio and video components, and multimedia systems for use in homes and automobiles, and with computers. The group’s brands include JBL, Infinity, Harman Kardon, Mark Levinson, Revel, Audioaccess and Lexicon.

HCG is a division of Harman International Industries, Incorporated. Harman International (www.harman.com) is a leading manufacturer of high-quality, high-fidelity audio products and electronic systems for the automotive, consumer and professional markets. The company’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “HAR.”